Thursday, 28 July 2016

Kerala man raises IS slogans on Dubai-Kozhikode flight

NEW DELHI: An Indigo airlines Dubai-Calicut flight was diverted to Mumbai on Thursday after a passenger’s “unruly behaviour”, an official said.

A Mumbai Police spokesperson said the passenger was detained for “his unruly behaviour” on the flight but denied that he had raised slogans supposedly hailing the Islamic State.

Earlier, it was reported that the man shouted pro-ISIS slogans. The passenger was handed over to the airport police around 9.15 am. The flight departed about an hour later minus the offloaded passenger, airport sources said.

In a statement, IndiGo airlines confirmed the diversion of its flight 6E 89 (Dubai-Calicut) to Mumbai this morning on grounds of unruly behavior on board.

“A little before landing, a passenger seated on 5D (who was accompanied by his brother) suddenly started misbehaving with the crew. He jumped on the forward cart (which is used for food and onboard merchandise) and sat on it. The crew immediately informed the Captain-in-command and the lead crew. The lead, politely requested the passenger to step down from the cart and he obliged. This passenger after stepping down from the cart, suddenly got violent and started physically abusing the other co-passenger.

“Taking the precautionary measure, the Captain immediately informed the Air Traffic control (ATC) and the ground security staff about the situation onboard. The flight made the precautionary landing at the Mumbai airport where this passenger was handed over to the CISF for further investigations. The matter is now with the local authorities.

“At IndiGo, safety and security of passengers and crew are of top priority and at no time safety can be compromised,” the airline said in the statement.

“Aarada ISIS? Entha ISIS? Enthina
paavangale kolunne? Islam paavangale kollaan pathipikyunnilla. Njyaan
ningale aakramikyum. Ende adthu varanda. Njyaan aareyum vimaanathil
ninnu purathekku vidilla (Who is ISIS? What is ISIS? Why are the
innocent being killed? Islam doesn’t teach the killing of the innocent. I
will fight you if you come close to me. I won’t allow anybody to get
off the plane).” This was the chilling threat in Malayalam made mid-air
by a 24-year-old man on IndiGo flight 6E 89 (Dubai-Kozhikode) yesterday
that sent chills though 184 passengers and crew.

The ruckus caught the IB’s attention because was the dreaded four-letter word: ISIS.

Due to the man’s “unruly behaviour”, the flight had to be diverted to Mumbai for a precautionary landing. The youth, Ismail Cheriya Parambath, allegedly mentally unstable, was offloaded along with his 33-year-old brother, handed over to the CISF and then to the IB for questioning. Till late last evening, the IB was trying to ascertain if he indeed suffers from a mental health disorder.

Ismail had been residing in Dubai for the last four years. His five brothers recently decided to send him back to their hometown, Kannur, in Kerala for treatment for his alleged mental disorder. The 33-year-old sibling was given the charge of taking him home safely.

The commotionThe flight departed from Dubai at 4.25 am and was scheduled to arrive in Kozhikode at 9.30 am.

Ismail Hamza (34), a native of Nandi, Kozhikode, who was in seat-1F of the flight, told mid-day that the passengers started drifting off to sleep soon after departure. His friend, Arafat Yasar (33), was in seat-1E. “Around 2 hours after take-off, a bang shook us all. We saw a young man sitting on a food cart, banging the overhead cabin. Within minutes, he started abusing passengers, including women,” recalled Hamza.

Ismail allegedly turned more aggressive
by the minute. “Initially, I thought he was drunk. But when he started
hitting people, I began fearing for my life,” said Yasar, who runs a
cargo business in Dubai.Crew frozen in shockHamza, a resident of Sharjah
who runs a logistics business in Dubai, said Ismail threatened the
passengers and questioned the ISIS dogma in a vicious tirade. “He then
ran towards the end of the plane and started munching on bread. The five
women crew members, who were non-Malayalis, were in shock and could not
utter a word.”
Hamza said since he and Yasar were in the front row, a flight
attendant asked them to help out in case Ismail pounced on a passenger.
“Later, a passenger went to the toilet and when he came out, the man,
who was waiting outside, slapped him hard. The passenger, a middle-aged
man, did not retaliate and went back to his seat calmly.”
By now, Ismail had allegedly taken a turn for the worse. When Yasar
tried to stop him, he rained blows on him, and then began punching other
passengers who intervened. Another passenger who tried to overpower him
was allegedly kicked. “We got the feeling that he was trained in some
martial art, as he could easily manage three to four people at a time,”
said Hamza. As the horror unfolded, passengers realised that Ismail’s
brother was seated helpless in the middle row. According to Araft, the
brother told them that Ismail was being taken to Kerala for treatment.IB takes overSome time later, Ismail calmed down
and plonked himself on the aisle. Meanwhile, the flight was diverted to
Mumbai, but the crew didn’t make any on-air announcement for fear of
provoking him further.
After landing at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport at
9.18 am, the brothers were offloaded with the help of CISF personnel and
taken to the international terminal for questioning by the IB. A
translator was also brought in.
Sources said the IB asked Ismail’s brother for the medical reports to
support the claim that he is mentally unstable. He was later taken to
the Sahar police station.
Around 7 pm, Ismail again allegedly turned aggressive and began
yelling in Malayalam. He was then taken to the Cooper Hospital. Hospital
sources said Ismail was admitted to the psychiatry ward. “The patient
is not stable. Our first priority is to stabilise him. After keeping him
under observation for a day or two, we will be able to diagnose his
ailment,” said a doctor.
The flight left Mumbai for Kozhikode at 10.52 am.
A passenger recorded the ordeal on his cellphone.

Was being treated by local psychiatrist, say Kerala policeKori
Sanjay Kumar Gurudin, district police chief, Kannur, Kerala, told
mid-day that Ismail hails from Panoor village in Kozhikode. “We have
been told that he had been undergoing treatment with a local
psychiatrist, but we are verifying this claim.”
Gurudin said the police will question Ismail once he is back in
Kerala. “So far, we haven’t come across any criminal record of him, but
investigation is on.”
He said Ismail is the fourth of eight siblings — five brothers and
three sisters — and a divorcee. “His brothers are settled in the Gulf.
Ismail is not well educated and was employed there at a shop.”
The Kozhikode police have search the family’s home in Kannur. “We
haven’t received any direct call from the Mumbai Police so far,” said
another police officer.

Airline speaksThe flight made a precautionary
landing at the Mumbai airport… The matter is now with the local
authorities. At IndiGo, the safety and security of passengers and crew
are top priority and at no time can safety be compromised.— An IndiGo spokesperson

IndiGo horror: Ismail unstable, not dangerous, says brother

Doctors treating 24-year-old Ismail Cheriya
Parambath, who created a ruckus on IndiGo flight 6E 89
(Dubai-Kozhikode) on Thursday and terrified passengers with his ‘ISIS
threat’, said they are yet to ascertain if the youth suffers from a
mental condition.

While Parambath’s elder brother Mahamood
(35) told mid-day that his brother was prone to unstable behaviour,
there is no conclusive diagnosis on his condition yet.

Mahamood, Ismail's brother

Parambath, who hails from Kannur in
Kerala, was flying to his hometown from Dubai, when he suddenly turned
violent. Due to his “unruly behaviour”, the flight had to be diverted to
Mumbai. He was offloaded along with his 33-year-old brother Sameer, and
later handed over to the IB for questioning as he had gone on a spiel
about how the ISIS was killing innocent victims. The Mumbai police are
now awaiting the final report from Cooper Hospital, where Parambath has
been admitted, to decide on the future course of action.
Parambath, an HSC dropout, was working on a monthly salary of 1,250
dirhams (approximate R22,700) as a counter staff at a grocery shop,
inside a labour camp in Dubai. “There were instances when he would leave
the counter and stand in one corner outside the shop, for hours,” said
Mahamood, in a telephonic conversation, from Kannur. “I asked my brother
Sameer to get him to Kerala for treatment, but we were instead shocked
to learn about the incident.”
Mahamood, however, is relieved that the Kerala police, which raided
Parambath’s family home after the incident, gave his brother a
clean-chit.
Meanwhile, Abdul Rahiman, general secretary of Bombay Kerala Muslim
Jamaath — an NGO that supports Keralities in transit — on Saturday, came
out in support of Parambath.
Speaking to mid-day, Rahiman said, “We met Ismail at Cooper Hospital
and have spoken to him at length. We have conveyed this to the doctor,
who has assured us that Ismail would be discharged from hospital, within
the next few days.”
Rahiman added, “We are also in touch with officers at Sahar police
station. We are confident that the police will understand his case.”
When contacted, Kori Sanjay Kumar Gurudin, district police chief,
Kannur district, said, “We have carried out preliminary inquiries and
found that Ismail has no criminal background or association with any
banned organisations.”